Several area high school basketball players and two coaches have earned Central District honors for the 2018-19 campaign.
A panel of sports writers from the district recently met to name first, second and third teams, along with honorable mention for boys and girls hoops in Divisions I-II-III-IV.
First-team honorees are Fairbanks High School senior Cross Hackathorne (boys D-III) and Jonathan Alder junior Sydney Bourquin (girls D-II).
Second-team accolades went to Alder junior Abby Jones (girls D-II), while third-team status went to Journey Blevins, a North Union sophomore (girls D-III), sophomore Preston Crabtree of NU (boys D-III) and Alder sophomore Jackson Izzard (boys D-II).
Fairbanks head coach Justin George was named the boys’ Division III coach of the year, while JA girls coach Steve Cawley earned like honors in Division II.
Hackathorne averaged nearly 13 points per game for the Panthers, while Bourquin is scoring at a 12.5 clip for the 18-6 Lady Pioneers.
Jones is the Lady Pioneers’ leading scorer at 14.5 points per game.
Blevins averaged 13 points and eight rebounds per game as the Lady Cats finished the season with a 7-16 record.
Crabtree is averaging more than 13 points per game for the Wildcats (13-10).
Izzard is averaging 13 points per game for the Pioneers (17-6).
George led FHS to a 20-3 record after going 11-12 a year ago. The Panthers won their second Ohio Heritage Conference North Division championship in the past three years.
Cawley’s Alder squad has improved from an 11-12 mark in 2017-18 to their current record.
A number of athletes have earned honorable mention status.
They are as follows by school:
Marysville
-Bodie Eberhart, Jack Christian, Logan Brown and Caitlin Cotner.
Eberhart averaged 16 points per game for the 8-15 Monarchs. Christian averaged 12. Brown and Cotner averaged in the range of six points per game for the Lady Monarchs, who posted a 10-13 record.
Fairbanks
-Tyler Beam, Braylon Green and Jacob Nicol. Beem averaged nine points and seven rebounds per game. Green scored at a 10.5 clip and averaged nearly nine boards. Nicol averaged nine points and three assists per game.
North Union
-Harley Day, Connor Terrill and Madison Amstutz.
Day is averaging 11 points and seven rebounds per game, while Terrill is scoring 11 points per outing. Amstutz averaged eight points per game for the Lady Cats.
Jonathan Alder
-Jackie Santa-Emma, Henry Walker and Melissa Walbom. Santa-Emma is averaging 11 points per game, Walker is averaging 10 and Walbom is averaging 10.4.